Muhlenberg College School of Graduate Studies is located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and is part of the larger Muhlenberg College institution. 

The graduate school offers a variety of programs, certificates, and continuing studies in fields such as education, medical and organizational leadership, and applied analytics. Most of their programs are designed to be accessible to working adults and are set up in a low-residency hybrid format. 

Through the leadership of Senior Director of Marketing and Recruitment, Shane Baglini, Muhlenberg recently transitioned its digital marketing efforts in-house while also changing CRM systems simultaneously, moving away from longstanding relationships with several marketing agencies and into Element451’s all-in-one enrollment marketing CRM solution. 

The shift was driven by the need for more flexibility and creativity in marketing campaigns, as well as a desire to save on costs. Additionally, Baglini knew that reaching the right students required a more personal approach that could only come from the institutional knowledge among staff and faculty.

We had a large contract with an outside agency and we saw okay results but deep down we know our programs and we know our audience and it would result in significant cost savings for the college.

Personalizing Outreach for Graduate Learners

Having launched the graduate school in early 2020, Muhlenberg faced the challenge of marketing to potential graduate students in various industries, with different income levels and demographics. As a result, the marketing team had to custom-build their audience and optimize campaigns accordingly.

According to Baglini, the right staff was essential to achieving success in this area. 

With a marketing team of only four people, including a business-to-business specialist, Muhlenberg needed the right resources in place to create a more personalized and engaging enrollment marketing strategy. 

The right mix required a more robust digital presence and easier ways to measure the success of each campaign.

With the way our website was set up, we didn’t have the cleanest way to measure data [from marketing campaigns] so we decided to change CRMs. We needed an enhanced digital presence.

Easily Bringing Marketing In-House with Element451

Muhlenberg’s large contract with their outside agency did not allow for flexibility in their marketing efforts. While the results were decent, the team believed that they could do a better job in-house, given their deep knowledge of the institution and students. 

“Divesting from that large agency relationship allowed us to create the multiple touchpoints that we need for our audience, including videos and out-of-home advertising, to create a more effective marketing mix," explained Baglini.

Muhlenberg also shifted to Element451's all-in-one CRM to enhance its digital presence. The CRM allowed the team to integrate all aspects of their marketing efforts, including admissions, financial aid, and enrollment management. 

The team went live with bringing their marketing efforts in-house on the first day of the fiscal year and saw immediate success.

We went with Element451 because our division is like our own mini college. We've got financial aid folks, we've got admissions folks, we've got our own application and we needed something that touched on all those those pieces and included marketing.

Streamlining Campaign Generation and Student Support

With Element451, staff can easily tweak and adjust its campaigns to highlight different aspects of its programs based on student feedback and career goals. Now, a full marketing campaign for a new academic program can be created in just one week.

Element451 also freed up time for the admissions team through the use of the integrated intelligent chatbot, BoltBot, which provides prospects live support instantly and around the clock.

BoltBot allows our small staff to communicate with prospects immediately with personalized, accurate information while freeing up valuable time for our admissions team to focus on interactions further down the funnel.

Muhlenberg needed a system to handle its graduate school operations as well as undergraduate adult degree completion admissions and enrollment management. 

To do so, Muhlenberg and Element 451 developed separate yet unified processes within the system, including a logic-based application specific to each school, coordinated admissions and application review rules, and various student-facing communications to provide distinct experiences for each audience.

The Numbers Don’t Lie: A Clear Return on Investment 

The results were impressive, with a 249% year-over-year increase in conversions through RFI forms, 153% increase in impressions, 45% increase in clicks, and a 26% decrease in cost per thousand impressions. 

In just 30 days, the team generated more inquiries from paid advertising using Element451 drag-and-drop customizable landing pages than in the previous six months.

Muhlenberg College School of Graduate Studies successfully shifted its digital marketing efforts in-house, using Element451’s all-in-one CRM and AI-powered solutions to improve its digital presence and increase conversions. 

By extending the efforts of Baglini’s four person team, expediting the creation of multiple touchpoints, and using a comprehensive CRM to create cohesion across the school, Muhlenberg was able to target custom audiences effectively, generate more inquiries, and save on costs.

formats:  master’s, certificates and 4+1

Reducing Costs and Increasing Conversions: Muhlenberg Graduate School Adopts Element451

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